1. Field of the Invention
The present invention concerns generally a pet barrier for installation in a vehicle. In particular, the present invention is directed to a pet barrier for automotive vehicles, wherein such vehicles include seating arrangements having backrests with removable headrests. For example, the present invention provides a portable barrier for the temporary containment of pets in the luggage/cargo portion of station wagons, vans, sport utility vehicles (SUV), and like enclosed vehicles, which have rear seat headrest assemblies included in a seating arrangement and where the headrests are readily removable therefrom. The installed barrier prevents the contained pet from climbing, leaping, or otherwise moving forward from the luggage/cargo portion and into the seating portions of the vehicle, which may be occupied by a driver or passengers.
2. Description of Related Art
Often there is a reoccurring need to transport medium to large pets, such as dogs, in an automotive vehicle, either the pet owner's vehicle or a vehicle owned by someone else. This need presents a continuing problem confronting these pet owners as to a simple, effective method for temporarily containing or restricting the pets during transportation, without having the pet either disrupt the driver and passengers or soil or damage the seating portions of the vehicle.
In many situations, cages and restraining straps are unsuitable due to space limitations in the vehicle, expense of a cage, or time and effort required to install and remove the cage or restraining straps. Some examples of non-cage, non-strap solutions to the problem are a portable barrier to prevent the pet from exiting the vehicle through an open window and an adjustable barrier mounted from floor to ceiling, extending transversely across the width of the vehicle. The examples entail adjustment of tubular structural members to form the pet barrier. U.S. Pat. No. 4,854,364 "PET BARRIER FOR CAR WINDOW INSTALLATION", U.S. Pat. No. D 326,076 "ANIMAL BARRIER FOR VEHICLES", and U.S. Pat. No. D 393,622 "VEHICLE SAFETY BARRIER FOR PETS" are incorporated herein by reference respectively for purposes of indicating the background of the present invention or illustrating the mature state of the art for constraining pets in vehicles without the use of cages or restraining straps.
A need exists for a simple, portable barrier that will restrict medium to large size pets to a particular portion of a vehicle, generally the rearmost portion of the vehicle.